Table-mat.



No, 875,076. PATENTED DEC. 31, 1907.

H. M. HINMAN.

TABLE MAT.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 28, 1906.

WIITNESSES: i- INVENTOR.

ATTYS.

HOWARD M. HINMAN, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

TABLE-MAT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 31, 1907.

Application filed Tune 28. 1906. Serial No. 323,962.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HOWARD M. HINMAN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Table-Mats, of whichthe following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings.

The object of this invention is to provide an efficient table mat to beused on a dining table under hot dishes to prevent marring the table.

Various forms of solid and. woven table mats have been used, but themats with which I am familiar, while to some extent retarding thepassage of heat from the dish, do eventually become hot and allow thetable to be marred.

My invention provides a ventilated mat made of heat-resisting materialand so arranged that while it is very neat in construction, it stillprovides sufficient ventilation space so that it is kept cool,protecting the table, no matter how long the hot dish may remain on themat.

The invention is hereinafter more fully described and its essentialcharacteristics set out in the claims.

The drawings show a mat embodying my invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the same. Fig. 2 is a cross section,and Fig. 3 is a plan of the mat with the upper plate removed.

My mat consists of an upper plate A anda lower plate B, each made ofthin heatresist ing material, as sheets of asbestos, and suit ableseparating intermediate strips near the edges of the plates A and B. Thedrawings show four of these strips, viz. two end strips C and two sidestrips C. These strips not only maintain the plates A and B separated sothat there is a large air space between them, but by being omitted. atcertain points as D, openings are provided into the interior of the mat.

The mat is constructed entirely of asbestos with a silicon cement. Theplates A and B and the intermediate strips being cut out of sheet stock,the strips are cemented to the plate B, and cement is then put on theupper side of the strips and plate A put in place. The strips C and Care flush at their outer edges with the edges of the plates A and B.This makes a very neat construction and at the same time a very strongone. The upper plate A, for example, which receives the dish issupported only at its outer edges, as shown, but being securely fastenedto the intermediate strips, it is sufficiently stiff so that it does notbend intermediately under the weight of the dish thereon. It willbenoticed that the end strips 0 are formed integrally around the cornersof the mat. This presents a very strong corner, preventing the breakageat this point. In mats of the smaller size, two openings D on oppositesides are sufficient, in which case, the additional strips C may beomitted and the inwardly projecting ends of the strips C continuedfurther toward each other to reduce the space between them.

My mat may be used either side up indiscriminately. WVhen. a heated dishis placed upon it, the layer of air beneath the top plate becomes heatedand expands, passing outwardly through the openings D. This outwardcurrent of air continues as long as the heat passing through the upperplate is increasing. As this heat begins to decrease, the contraction ofthe air reverses the current and the cooler air passes into the mat. Theresult is that the intermediate air is sufficiently agitated to preventits serving as a communication of heat to the lower plate of the mat,and that plate is thus kept cool.

It is to be particularly noted that my mat is very flat. A mat of anyconsiderable height is unsightly and is not suitable for use on anydining table. My mat attracts practically no attention, and, whenobserved, is more ornamental than otherwise. It is very cheap tocon.struct,cheaper in fact than if it were a solid piece of asbestos,while possessing very much greater efficiency.

I claim.

In a table mat having corners, in combination, two sheets ofheat-resisting material, thin separating strips secured between thesheets with their outer edges flush with the outer edges of the sheets,said separating strips being located along opposite edges of the mat andpassing integrally around the corners thereof, and there being spacebetween the ends of such strips to provide admission openings into theinterior of the mat.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto affix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

HOWARD M. I-IINMAN.

Witnesses:

J. B. HULL, S. E. Fours.

